Hull City

Hull City is a football (soccer) club from England.

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Hull City Association Football Club are an English association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, founded in 1904. In 2007-08 in English football they achieved promotion to the top flight of English football for the first time in their history, by winning the Football League Championship Football League play-offs final at Wembley Stadium. They finished the 2008-09 in English football season 17th in the Premier League table, successfully avoiding relegation by one point. The previous highest position Hull City had finished in the English Football League was third in the old Football League Second Division in 1909–10 in English football, which they matched in 2007-08 in English football when they gained promotion. Their greatest achievement in cup competitions came in 1930 in association football, when Hull City reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup.

Hull City play their home games at the KC Stadium in Hull. They previously played at Boothferry Park, but moved to their current home in 2002 in association football, with Boothferry Park set for demolition. They traditionally play in black and amber, often with a striped shirt design, hence their nickname The Tigers. The club's mascot is Roary the Tiger.

History

Hull City Association Football Club was founded in June 1904. For some years prior to this, attempts were made to found a football club, but this proved difficult in a city then dominated by respectable rugby league teams such as Hull F.C. and Hull Kingston Rovers and their dedicated fans.

Hull City's first season as a professional football club consisted only of friendly matches, as due to the time of founding, Hull were unable to apply for membership to The Football League for the 1904-05 in English football season. These early matches were played at The Boulevard (stadium), the old home of rugby league side Hull FC. On 1 September 1904, Hull's debut match took place against Notts County F.C.; with 6000 in attendance at The Boulevard, Hull notched up an impressive start, holding the more experienced County to a 2–2 draw.

Hull's first competitive football game was in the FA Cup, but they were eliminated, after a replay, in the preliminary round against Stockton F.C., the score was 7–4 on aggregate. After disputes with landlords at The Boulevard, Hull City moved to Anlaby Road Cricket Ground. Other teams competing in the league that season included the likes of Manchester United F.C. and Chelsea F.C., as well as Yorkshire rivals Leeds City F.C., Bradford City A.F.C. and Barnsley F.C.. Hull faced Barnsley in their first game, a fixture which Hull won 4–1. Eventually, Hull would finish the season in fifth place. The cup run saw Hull knocking out the eventual Champions of the Second and Third Division; Blackpool F.C. and Plymouth Argyle F.C. respectively. They then knocked out Manchester City F.C., to meet Newcastle United F.C. in the FA Cup quarter finals. The first leg at St James' Park finished as a 1–1 draw, but in the replay Hull beat Newcastle 1–0. The semi-final match against Arsenal F.C. took place at Elland Road in Leeds, the game ended 2–2, and was taken to a replay. Arsenal knocked Hull out at Aston Villa F.C.'s home ground, the game ending 1–0. and their newly built Boothferry Park ground saw a crowd approaching 50,000 for the Christmas Day game against Rotherham United F.C., and exceeded by that for the FA Cup 6th round tie with Manchester United; the attendance of 55,019 still remains a record today.

'Yo-yoing' between the second and third tiers of English football, Hull City had promotion seasons from the Third to the Second Division again in 1959 and 1966, winning the Third Division in the latter season. Hull became the first team in the world to go out of a cup competition on penalties, which came against Manchester United in the semi-final of the Watney Cup on 1 August 1970. By the early 1980s, Hull City were down in the Fourth Division, and financial collapse lead to receivership.

The low ebb saw the arrival of unlikely looking saviours in the form of a chairman (Don Robinson) and manager (Colin Appleton) from the footballing outpost of Scarborough F.C Promotion to Division Three followed in 1983, with a young team featuring the likes of future England international Brian Marwood, future England manager Steve McClaren, fearsome centre-forward Billy Whitehurst, and the prolific goal-scorer Les Mutrie. When Hull City missed out on promotion by one goal the following season, Appleton left to manage Swansea City F.C..

Hull City, along with Grimsby Town F.C. were the only two professional teams which had official permission to play league football on Christmas Day because of the demands of the fish trade. That tradition has now disappeared following the dramatic reduction of their trawler fleets in recent years.

Decline in the late 20th century

Hull reached the Second Division in 1986 under player-manager Brian Horton. They defied the odds to stay there for the next five years before finally going down in 1991, by which time Hull City's manager was Terry Dolan (football manager). Hull finished 14th in the Third Division in the 1991-92 in English football season, meaning that they would be competing in the new Football League Division Two the following season. In their first season in the rebranded division, Hull narrowly avoided another relegation, but the board kept faith in Dolan and over the next two seasons they achieved secure mid table finishes. Financial difficulties hampered City's progress, as key players such as Dean Windass and Andy Payton had to be sold to fend off Liquidation. Terrible form in the 1995-96 in English football season condemned Hull to relegation to Division Three.

In 1997 Hull City was purchased by former tennis player David Lloyd, who sacked Dolan as manager and replaced him with Mark Hateley after Hull could only finish in 17th place in the table. Hull's league form was steadily deteriorating to the point that relegation to the Football Conference was looking a real possibility. Lloyd sold Hull City in November 1998 to a South Yorkshire based consortium, but retained ownership of Boothferry Park. Hateley departed in November 1998, with Hull City anchored to the foot of the table. He was replaced by 34-year-old veteran player Warren Joyce, who steered Hull City to safety with games to spare. Hull City fans refer to this season as "The Great Escape". After this feat, Joyce was perhaps unlucky to be replaced in April 2000 by the experienced Brian Little (footballer). The 2005-06 in English football season, Hull City's first back in the second tier, saw Hull finish in 18th place, a comfortable 10 points clear of relegation and their highest league finish for 16 years.

However, Taylor left Hull City on 13 June 2006 to take up the manager's job at Crystal Palace F.C.. but was sacked on 4 December 2006 with Hull in the relegation zone, despite having spent over £2 million on players. Phil Brown (footballer born 1959) took over as caretaker manager, Brown brought veteran striker Dean Windass back to his hometown club on loan from Bradford City, and his eight goals helped secure Hull's Championship status as they finished in 21st place. At the end of the season, another familiar face, former manager Brian Horton, rejoined Hull City as Phil Brown's assistant.

Adam Pearson sold Hull City to a consortium led by Paul Duffen in June 2007, stating that he "had taken Hull City as far as I could", and would have to relinquish control in order to attract "really significant finance into the club".
He resigned from the board on 31 July 2007, thus severing all ties with the club.

Under Paul Duffen and manager Phil Brown (footballer born 1959) Hull City improved greatly on their relegation battle of 2006-07 in English football and qualified for the play-offs after finishing the season in third place. They beat Watford F.C. 6–1 on aggregate in the semi-finals and played Bristol City F.C. in the 2008 Football League Championship playoff final on 24 May 2008, which Hull won 1–0 at Wembley Stadium, with Hull native Dean Windass scoring the winning goal. Their ascent from the bottom division of the English football league to the top in just five seasons is the third fastest ever.

Despite being one of the favourites for relegation, they began life in the Premier League in great form, beating Fulham F.C. 2–1 on the opening day in their first ever top flight fixture. With only one defeat in their opening nine games, Hull City found themselves (temporarily) joint top of the table, third on goal difference, following a 3–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion F.C. - ten years previously they had been bottom of tier four of the English football league system. Hull City's form never replicated the highs of the early autumn, winning only two more games over the remainder of the season. Despite the drop in form and slow slide down the table, Hull City went into the final game of the season in 17th place and above the drop zone. They ultimately lost the game against Manchester United F.C. 0–1, however Newcastle United F.C. and Middlesbrough F.C. also lost their games against Aston Villa F.C. and West Ham United F.C. respectively, thus securing a second Premier League season for Hull City.

On 10 June 2009, Hull City were officially announced as part of the Barclays Asia Trophy 2009. In this 4-team tournament Hull City will be competing against two English sides, Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United, as well local side Beijing Guoan, whom they will play in their semi-final.

Colours and crest

Throughout the majority of the history of the club, Hull have worn black and amber shirts with black shorts. These black and amber colours are where Hull's nickname, The Tigers, originated from. Following the end of the Second World War, Hull spent another season wearing sky blue, but changed to plain amber shirts, which they wore until the early 1960s, when they swapped back to stripes.

During the mid 1970s and early 1980s, the strip was constantly changing between the two versions of plain shirts and stripes. During the late 1980s, red was added to the kits but its duration went no further than this. The early 1990s featured two 'tiger skin' designs, which have since featured in a number of 'worst ever football kit' articles. The 1998–99 season introduced a kit with cross-fading amber and white stripes; another experimentation which proved unpopular. After the turn of the century, Hull City wore plain amber shirts until 2004, when Hull City celebrated its centenary by wearing a kit similar to the design of the one worn 100 years ago.

Hull City did not wear a crest on their team shirt until 1947. This crest depicted a tiger's head in a yellow-shaded badge, which was worn up until 1955, when it was changed to just the tiger's head. This was worn for four years, when the shirt again featured no emblem. Then, in 1971, Hull City returned to showing the tiger's head on the shirt. This was used for four years, until Hull City initials 'HCAFC' were shown for five years. After this, a logo with the tiger's head with the clubs name underneath was used from 1980 until 1998. The next logo, which is currently used by the club, features the tiger's head in an amber shield which shows the clubs name, along with Hull City's nickname, The Tigers.

Stadia

Between 1904 and 1905, Hull City played their home games at The Boulevard (stadium). This ground was used by Hull on a contract, where they would be allowed to use it when not used for Rugby League, costing £100 per annum. Hull built their own ground, Anlaby Road, which was opened in 1906. With the threat of the rerouting of the railway line through the Anlaby Road ground, Hull City was convinced it needed to secure its future by owning its own ground.

During World War II, Anlaby Road was damaged by the Blitz, with repairs costing in the region of £1,000. The Cricket Club had served notice to quit at the same time and in 1943, the tenancy was officially ended.

Statistics and records

Andy Davidson (footballer) holds the record for Hull City league appearances, having played 520 matches. George Maddison (footballer born 1902) comes second, having played 430 matches. Chris Chilton is Hull City's top goalscorer with 222 goals in all competitions. Chilton also holds Hull City record for goals scored in the League (193), FA Cup (16) and League Cup (10).

The club's widest victory margin in the league was their 11–1 win against Carlisle United F.C. in Football League Third Division in 1939. Their heaviest defeat in the league was 8–0 against Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. in 1911.

Hull City's record home attendance is 55,019, for a match against Manchester United F.C. on 26 February 1949 at Boothferry Park,

The highest transfer fee received for a Hull City player is £1.25 million, from Crystal Palace for Leon Cort in June 2006.

Players

Player of the Year

- Assistant Manager: Brian Horton
- First Team Coach: Steve Parkin
- Goalkeeping Coach: Mark Prudhoe
- Reserve Team Coach: Aidan Davison
- Development Coach: Stuart Watkiss
- ProZone Consultant/Performance Analyst: Luke Cash
- Chief Scout: Bob Shaw
- Youth Recruitment Officer: Neil Mann
- Centre of Excellence Director/FITC Officer: John Davies
- Enterprise Co-Ordinator: Andy McMillan
- Head Physiotherapist: Simon Maltby
- Assistant Physiotherapist: Liam McGarry
- Kit Manager: Barry Lowe
- Club Secretary: Phil Hough

Related teams

Hull City A.F.C. Reserves

Hull City Reserves play in the Premier Reserves League North Division. The team plays home fixtures at the Church Road Ground, home of North Ferriby United A.F.C..

In the 2006-07 in English football season, Hull finished in fourth place in the league table after picking up 31 points from their 18 league meetings.

Hull City A.F.C. Juniors

Hull City Juniors play in the Football League Youth Alliance, playing their home fixtures at Winterton Rangers F.C's home stadium.

Recently the juniors have had a successful 2006-07 in English football season, winning the league title by a 10 point margin. They also reached the fourth round of the FA Youth Cup, losing 2–1 to eventual semi-finalists Arsenal F.C. Juniors. In 2007-08 in English football they retained the league title and also won the Football League Youth Alliance Cup.

Hull City Women A.F.C.

Hull City Women play in the Northern Combination Women's Football League. In the 2006-07 in English football season, Hull City finished seventh in the table with 33 points.

Rivalries

According to a 2003 poll, Hull City fans consider their main rival to be Leeds United A.F.C., though this is not reciprocated. Much of this was due to the high numbers of Leeds fans living in the Hull area during a period when Leeds were in the upper and Hull in the lower divisions. The rivalry had increased further in recent times with the return of league meetings when both teams were present in Football League Championship. It is difficult to know the current level of support for Leeds United in the Hull area due to the reluctance of their supporters these days to wear the shirt in public in the town.

Other rivals include their neighbours from across the Humber, Scunthorpe United F.C. and Grimsby Town F.C..

Hull City also has a traditional rivalry with Sheffield United F.C., chiefly from the 1970s and 1980s when the clubs spent several seasons together at different levels. In 1984 Sheffield United won promotion at Hull City's expense by the narrow margin of one goal scored, giving further credibility to this East and South Yorkshire rivalry, and 33 of their goals were scored by former Hull City striker Keith Edwards. City's final game of the season against Burnley F.C. had been rescheduled due to bad weather; they went into the game knowing a three-goal victory would mean promotion, but managed only a 2–0 win in front of a crowd made up of Sheffield United fans as well as those of the two teams playing.

Additionally Lincoln City F.C. and York City F.C. name Hull amongst their rivals.

Honours

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Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea, Everton, Fulham, Hull City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle United, Portsmouth, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion, West Ham United, Wigan Athletic